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By Jonathon BurchReuters • Friday February 1, 2013 6:19 AM

ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey plans to offer incentives including free fertility treatment to try to
reverse a slowing birth rate after official figures showed the median age of its population has
crept above 30 for the first time.

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan wants Turkey, a nation of more than 75 million people, to be among
the world’s top 10 economies by 2023 when the Turkish Republic turns 100 years old. Per-capita
income has tripled during his decade in power.

But the government fears that an aging population could eventually lead Turkey down the same
path as more-developed economies in Europe, toward a shrinking work force and rising welfare
spending.

A graying nation also contradicts Turkey’s self-image as virile and dynamic, eager to take a
more-prominent role on the world stage.

A religious and social conservative, Erdogan has for years publicly advocated families having at
least three children and more recently has suggested having five.

But since he came to power, the country’s fertility rate, the ratio of births to the number of
women of childbearing age, has fallen below the 2.1 needed to replenish its population, sinking to
2.02 in 2011.

This week, Turkey’s statistics bureau released data showing the median age has risen above 30
for the first time, to 30.1, up from 29.7 in 2011. Population growth slowed from 1.35 percent in
2011 to 1.2 percent last year.

Development Minister Cevdet Yilmaz said Turkey needed to move closer into line with Europe,
where some parents receive child-benefit payments and tax deductions.

Turkey’s labor minister said over the weekend the government was also looking at extending
maternity leave from four to six months.

The family and social policies minister announced late last year a project to provide fertility
treatment to 2,500 families who currently had no children and were not eligible for state health
insurance.

Turkey also suffers a high infant mortality rate, although this gets little mention in public
debate.